A well being drilled for monitoring the effects of landfill leachate on the arsenic concentration in the groundwater at the Saco Municipal Landfill, Saco, Maine. (U.S. Geological Survey)

The process of landfill mining requires heavy construction equipment for excavating, conveyors for transporting the excavated materials, and screening equipment for separating and recovering the useable materials. In addition, soils must be decontaminated and hazardous wastes contained for disposal. Finally, the reclaimed land must be regraded and covered with topsoil. See also: Construction equipment; Conveyor; Hazardous waste; Screening

Landfill mining entails some environmental risks. Excavation and separation processes can emit methane and volatile organic compounds; operation of the production equipment can release carbon dioxide; and the handling of toxic materials and medical waste (including pharmaceutical residues) poses hazards to human health and the environment. Nevertheless, landfill mining also offers the great environmental benefit of cleaning up old, unsound landfills that contaminate the soil and groundwater through leaching and runoff that contains toxic materials (including heavy metals such as lead and mercury), minerals such as asbestos, organic chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenyls, and pathogens such as bacteria and viruses. See also: Asbestos; Environmental engineering; Environmental toxicology; Greenhouse effect; Groundwater hydrology; Hazardous waste engineering; Lead; Medical waste; Mercury (element); Pathogen; Polychlorinated biphenyls

At present, mining landfills for their metal content is not economically viable. However, landfill mining is expected to become more cost-effective in the future, as concentrations of recoverable minerals in the earth decrease and the technology for mining and processing landfill materials advances. See also: Mineral resources; Precious element resources

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